A Light in the Dark
by katierosefun
Summary: [Post season five. Two years on FanFiction!] When Anakin Skywalker is lost in the catacombs, a certain person returns to lead him out. [Friendship fluff.]


_**Do you know what day it is? Do you? **_**'Cause doods, it's my two-year anniversary on FanFiction! Yay! *throws confetti/edible sparkles because I'm random like that* ****_Wow. _****I can't believe I lasted this long! To be quite honest, when one of my older friends introduced me to FanFiction two years ago, I figured that this would be something I'd quit in a few months. **

**Ladies and gentlemen, I have never been so wrong in my life. I mean, for the most part, I suppose I was correct - I wasn't really addicted when I first joined, but after a turn of pretty sad events, I found myself obsessing over writing because I had enjoyed it so much before. **

**That was when I found you guys - the ****_Clone Wars_**** fandom. My first story was ****_I Hate the Beach _****(maaan, that brings back memories!) and it was about Anakin and Ahsoka spending a maybe-not-so-decent time at the...you guessed it, the beach. I remember in those times of sadness, I needed to write about something happy to numb the pain a bit. And that's what writing about Anakin and Ahsoka and the rest of the ****_Clone Wars _****characters did - numb the pain. But then I slowly realized that people were actually ****_reading _****my stuff and saying nice things to me about it...and that really made the difference, because at the time, I thought I was some sad, twisted (excuse my language) bitch who didn't deserve anyone's time. I was ****_this _****close to taking the extra pills and ending my life right there and I ****_know _****that I shared this story before, but I can't stress enough how thankful I am that you people found me on time. **

**So this isn't just to celebrate my two years of being here - this is also to celebrate ****_you amazing, wonderful people _****for being there when I needed a helping hand the most. Thank you. :) Enjoy! **

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><p><em>A Light in the Dark <em>

Anakin Skywalker knew that heading into the underground catacombs by himself would be a bad idea. Everything _about _the place screamed, '_don't come here! Danger! Proceed with caution!_' But then again, Anakin had never been one to take note of those kinds of signs. And besides, if he never took the occasional risk, where would he be?

So Anakin did just that – he headed into the catacombs when no one was looking, just to take a quick look and be done with it. He'd be back before Obi-Wan would even notice, and that would be all.

But then the entrance closed in, and Anakin couldn't contact anyone through his comm. There wasn't a whole ton of light, either, and though Anakin was quick to use his light saber as a source, it still didn't make the situation any better. "Well," he said aloud to himself as he gazed around the dark tunnels. "I'm not going out _that _way."

For a fleeting second, Anakin wondered what Ahsoka would tell him. She'd probably chide something along the lines, _"Of _course _not. Nice move, Skyguy. Any _other _ideas on getting out?" _ A sad smile twitched at the corner of Anakin's lips. Good, old Snips. Too bad she wasn't here right now – he could do with some commentary from her for once.

Anakin quickly turned back to the blocked entrance and, staring at the rocks, wondered if he could remove them. He'd done it before – but that was with Obi-Wan, and that resulted in almost passing out from toxic gas that was released from the rocks.

And then Ahsoka blew up the entrance.

And Ahsoka wasn't here to blow the entrance in case Anakin could mess up. He let out a long, deep sigh and whirled back around. It seemed that he would just have to test his luck and come up with a different way to escape. Who knew how long the catacombs could run for – they could go on for miles and miles and miles, or they could only go a little ways before coming to a different opening. Anakin would just have to hope for the best.

"Well," Anakin murmured as he took the first steps forward. "It's better than nothing." He headed for the tunnels. The ghostly blue light of his light saber held out for a decent light, and seemed to scare away any curious critters that would dance around Anakin's feet. He tried not to mind them so much, mainly because after a few minutes, they'd get bored and leave him alone. The silence was beginning to get to him, too.

"Not so-good looking catacombs and currently exploring it by accident," Anakin said slowly. "Probably not my best moment, but no one's here to witness it." He paused. "Oh, and Obi-Wan doesn't have to know about this, either. That is, just in case he's wondering where I ran off to."

Anakin held up the light saber to another part of the tunnel, where it branched off to a different side. He sucked in a breath and added, "_And _I'm talking to myself. As if this entire situation didn't seem strange and bothersome enough already." Oddly enough, Anakin didn't stop himself from talking. If anything, Anakin was beginning to grow accustomed to listening to himself speak as he ventured deeper and deeper into the catacombs. He realized that the longer he spoke, the longer he felt that there might be someone listening to him besides himself. (And while he was well aware how spooky it might seem, Anakin felt reassured by that.) "The catacombs wouldn't be all that bad, really," he whispered. "That is, if you…liked that kind of thing." He peeked around the corner, inwardly groaning to see another large set of fresh tunnels before him.

Anakin briefly wondered how much time had passed. "Can't make any communications, check," he breathed. "Can't try to cut through the walls because really, who knows how stable these things are." He leaned against the wall, closing his eyes. "Can't walk back, because it's been too long and I didn't bother checking which tunnels led where. Of course."

"Of course," someone repeated.

Anakin flinched, opening his eyes and swinging his light saber in front of him. What came next was even more unexpected than the interruption in his thoughts. "Whoa!" a voice shrieked, and then after a few seconds, it added, "I forgot about how quick you were. Glad you didn't cut my legs off – _that _would have been pretty inconvenient."

Anakin frowned, narrowing his eyes into the darkness. He held his light saber a bit higher, trying to make out the source of the voice. "Who are you?" he called. There was a tsk. "You already forgot about me?" the voice asked, wounded. Female. Definitely female.

Then, a person stepped out of the shadows. Anakin saw the eyes first – a set of wide, shining blue irises on an orange-red-skinned face with white markings. "Ahsoka," he said quietly.

The Togruta smiled, crossing her arms. "Skyguy," she greeted, her voice just as soft. She gestured around the catacombs. "Sensed you the second you came into this section of the tunnels. I'm pretty surprised that you didn't notice it right away, either."

Anakin frowned. "No," he replied. He pointed a finger at Ahsoka. "I kept talking aloud – I felt like someone was listening to me." He paused. "Was that you?" he asked. Ahsoka grinned. "Yeah," she replied with a small nod. "Liked the bit about Master Kenobi not knowing anything, but I bet he's going to put two and two together when you return."

To his surprise, Anakin let out a small laugh. "Probably," he admitted. He tilted his head at Ahsoka, trying to drink her image in. She was a bit taller than the last time Anakin had seen her – right on the Temple steps, that is. She had a cloak wrapped around the rest of her attire, which, Anakin noticed with a pang, hadn't changed. Ahsoka noticed Anakin watching.

Clearing her throat, Ahsoka turned and crossed her arms. "So," she said. "What brings you to the planet? I thought this was out of the war zone."

"It is," Anakin replied quickly. "It was just a…quick hideaway. You know, risky escapes and all that."

Ahsoka pressed her lips together into a tight smile. "Yeah," she murmured. She blinked up at Anakin and asked, "Do you want me to lead you out, or…?" Anakin frowned down at the younger girl. "That's it?" he asked quizzically. Ahsoka shrugged her shoulders. "What else do you want me to say?" she responded, flicking her eyes around the tunnels. "I mean, you should be on your way and everything, right?"

"It's just – _that's it?_" Anakin repeated incredulously. "Just a '_hello, let's get out of here'_?" He held up a hand. "Actually, no – not _even _that. More like a _hello, not dead – I'm going to lead you out now and pretend that we never had this encounter._" Ahsoka lifted an eye-marking. An odd little smile twitched at the corner of her lips. "At least you still have your sense of humor," she said dryly.

Anakin stared. "Is that really it?" he asked, waving his hand in front of Ahsoka's face. "Is that really _all _you have to say to me?" Ahsoka didn't give so much as a blink before replying unwaveringly, "I think we should get going now." Without another word, she started down one of the tunnels. Puffing out a breath, Anakin had no choice but to run after her. "Are you going to keep ignoring me?" he called. "Or is this going to be one of those moments when you say something, then I argue, and then we make everything better with an apology?"

Anakin startled at his own words. They had fallen so easily over his lips; come out so naturally, that it was almost as though he had forgotten about what really happened between them in the last few months. As though Ahsoka wasn't ever gone at all. As though Anakin hadn't watched her leave the Order – watch her leave _him. _

"There's nothing to argue about, Anakin," Ahsoka replied, her voice surprisingly worn. She shot a glance over her shoulder, and almost like she was surprised to find Anakin staring at her, quickly turned back around. Still, she continued speaking, "I'm just doing this for…old time's sake." There was a beat of silence. "Besides, these catacombs are treacherous. It'd be awful for _anyone _to get lost here."

"And you figured them out?" Anakin asked with a lifted eyebrow.

"I figured them out," Ahsoka confirmed. "I remembered the time Barriss and I –" For the first time she had spoken, Ahsoka's voice caught. Anakin could feel himself flinching at that, too. He was well aware of what Ahsoka was talking about, only he wasn't reacting because of the mention of Barriss. He was reacting because it was during that day – on Geonosis – when Anakin realized that Ahsoka could be taken away from him _any minute. _She had been buried under tons of debris, and it was only Anakin who had hoped that she was still down there.

"Anyways." Ahsoka broke her own sentence off and took a quick turn. "Doesn't matter – I just managed to re-trace the catacombs after a while, and sometimes, I like to come here to…think on things."

"So…you don't live here, I'm guessing," Anakin replied. He heard a small snort from Ahsoka. "I may have done a few questionable things in the past, Anakin, but I'm not _that _crazy." She gave an evident pause and then added almost lightly, "Then again, I suppose I wouldn't have been too surprised if I did that, either. Influenced under you and all, Skyguy."

"Me, getting stuck down here? I don't think so, Snips," Anakin found himself retorting. At those words, he gawked after Ahsoka. He shook his head to himself and took a few more steps. It really _had _been a while.

"Hm," Ahsoka murmured and started to hike up a slope of rocks and dirt. She turned around to look at Anakin, eyes shining in the light of his light saber. He cleared his throat and, shooting a look around the cavern, asked, "How were you able to get around without light?"

Ahsoka shrugged her shoulders. "You get used to it after a while." She said simply. Anakin frowned. "What, so you traveled down here without anything?" he asked incredulously.

"I…didn't really have much of a choice," Ahsoka mumbled. At Anakin's questioning look, she hurried on, "I got lost down here. It was in the middle of the night and I needed somewhere to hide out because of the creatures that lived here and…yeah. That happened." Anakin's heart sunk. He had to resist the urge to launch into another series of questions – was she hurt? Did she seek help after getting lost? Did she have any weapons with her? Did she have the right tools and necessities to survive?

Instead, Anakin pressed his lips together and replied as quietly as he could, "I'm glad you're safe, at least."

"What was that?" the Togruta asked, fixing her eyes on Anakin. He coughed into his fist and turned around to inspect the rocky walls. "You don't look half bad for someone who spends time in this thing," he said loudly. He could feel Ahsoka's eyes boring holes into his back – _Force_, that hadn't changed, either – but she responded slowly, "I said that I only came here when I really needed to think. This was just one of the times I had to do that."

Then, she hurried down the tunnel. Anakin jogged after her, and for a while, the two lapsed back into silence. It wasn't completely uncomfortable or awkward, though he was beginning to wish that one of them would say something to keep their minds off of…whatever the either was thinking.

"We're almost there," Ahsoka called back after a few minutes. "Just a little ways down the tunnels and you'll be back outside in no time."

"But _where? _I mean, I don't exactly want to end up on the other side of the planet," Anakin replied. Ahsoka shrugged her shoulders. "You'd probably be a few feet away from where you originally started. Trust me, this part of the catacombs doesn't really run too deep or too far – if you were in a _different _layer, _then _we'd probably have a bit more trouble trying to re-locate where you were before this all happened." She froze and looked over at Anakin with a frown. "Speaking of which, how _did _this all happen?"

"Same way as you, I suppose," Anakin replied. "Got curious. Needed to get away for a bit."

It might have been a trick of the dim light, but Anakin could have sworn he saw a faint smile over Ahsoka's lips. "I see," she murmured. She rubbed a hand over her arm and kicking at the ground, added, "Um. For the record, though, I don't mean to ignore you or pretend like this isn't a big deal." Her eyes flitted up to Anakin. "Because it really is, you know. A big deal." Her voice lowered. "I just…I mean, it's not like you're going to stay here for long, so it'd be best to just keep some distance, you know?"

Anakin swallowed. A burst of pain at his throat flared up and his eyes were beginning to burn, but the older man simply nodded. "Yeah," he whispered. "I understand."

The Togruta tugged at her arm again, and then nodding down the tunnel, sighed, "Come on." She made her way around the dirt and boulders and sure enough, a clearing was beginning to make out in Anakin's eyes. Light was pouring out from it and pooling at the rocks, creating almost a celestial image.

But even though Anakin was relieved to be out of the dark catacombs so soon, he also felt sadness twinge at his heart. For what seemed like the hundredth time, he looked up at Ahsoka. It wouldn't kill them to have a little extra time, would it? Even if it wasn't in the most desirable circumstances?

"You're here now," Ahsoka said at last, pointing out. "You'll definitely end up where you were." She narrowed her eyes and, standing at the tips of her toes, added, "I think I even see a few clone trooper helmets lying around." She shaded a hand over her eyes. "Yup. Definitely troopers. And Master Kenobi's beard. Huh. Never knew how much it stood out 'till now."

Anakin let out a weak chuckle at that – he couldn't help it. He shut off his light saber and started to mount towards the clearing. "Thanks," he said quietly.

"Uh-huh," Ahsoka replied. She was inspecting her fingernails halfheartedly, making sure that her eyes wouldn't come in contact with Anakin's. The older man exhaled a long, deep breath and forced himself to turn back around. _Don't look back, _he thought to himself. _Don't look back now, or you won't ever be able to forgive yourself. _

"Anakin?"

Anakin's heart jumped up to his throat. He whirled around quickly to look at Ahsoka, who seemed to have grown smaller in the past few seconds. Her arms were wrapped around her torso, her eyes wider than ever. She gave Anakin a small smile and said quietly, "Look after yourself, okay? And don't get lost in anymore catacombs?"

Anakin wanted to smile back at Ahsoka – he wanted to pretend like everything was fine and that the atmosphere was to be light and teasing. But he couldn't. He responded, "I think I want to say the same to you."

There were definite tears rising in Ahsoka's eyes now. She pressed her lips so tightly together that all what was left was a white, thin line. Then, letting out an almost strangled-sounding cry, the Togruta scrambled forward and threw her arms around Anakin. It nearly knocked the breath out of him; but he didn't mind. He didn't hesitate to wrap his own arms around the younger girl's waist; squeezing her tight to him. "I missed you a lot, Skyguy," Ahsoka was saying, her voice muffled by the embrace.

Anakin closed his eyes. "Missed you, too, Snips," he said, tightening his grip on her. "You don't even know how much I want you to come back."

"I know," Ahsoka replied. Anakin felt her lower her forehead over his shoulder. "But you understand why I can't," her voice was soft. However, her own arms were still just as strong around Anakin as his were around her. "Can't you at least visit?" Anakin asked, hating how childish and small he sounded. "At least just once in a while?"

There was a long pause. Then, with another squeeze, Ahsoka replied, "Would that be okay?"

"More than okay," Anakin said immediately. "And if anyone has anything to say against it, I'll make sure that they go through me, first."

"Careful, people will begin to suspect that you're capable of dangerous things, Anakin," Ahsoka mumbled, but her words were accented with light giggles. Anakin grinned. He slowly let go of Ahsoka and said, "I can even get you down there with me right now! We can go back to Coruscant and you don't have to return to the Order, but you could still see everyone else and –"

"Slow down, Skyguy," Ahsoka interrupted, lifting her hands. Anakin obeyed. (For once.) She sighed and said, "I promise I'll come back. Trust me, I'd be happy to…at least see you again and know that everything's going okay with you and everyone else." She looked over Anakin's shoulder, to the camps. "But right now, surrounded by…them, it brings back…"

"Memories." Anakin finished quietly.

Ahsoka nodded. "Memories of what could have been, what was…" her voice drifted. She looked back up at Anakin. "And to be honest, I don't think I can really deal with that right now." Before Anakin could protest, she reached over and took his hand. "So you'll just have to wait for me."

"Wait." Anakin repeated softly.

"That's right," Ahsoka said, her eyes shining. She squeezed Anakin's hand. "D'you think you can do that for a while? Just wait a bit?"

Anakin took a deep breath. He turned around and stole a quick glance at the camps – and then looked back at Ahsoka. "If that's what makes you happy," he replied slowly. "If that's what makes you feel safer."

Ahsoka's face stretched out into a smile – a happier smile. "Thank you," she whispered. She let go of Anakin's hand and nodded at the clearing. "You better get going, Skyguy," she added. Then, with a wink, she continued, "Your troopers are waiting for you."

Anakin grinned. He took a few steps back and replied, "And I'll be seeing you soon, Snips?"

"Definitely. I'll beat you to it." Ahsoka shot back.

"Not if I get there first," Anakin retorted, feeling warmth fill his chest. Then, with another grin, he leapt out of the clearing.

_Not if I get there first. _

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><p><strong>AN - _Symbolism. _Just like Anakin, I think there's people out there who get lost in the dark - they might not realize it, but they _are. _And then there's Ahsoka - people who _can hep..._and they do, but it's not until you're in the clearing - or at the end of the journey - do you realize how much they've done for you. :') **

**Again, thank you so much for everything that you've done for me. You've taught me what real friendship looked like - something I was lacking in when I first began writing content for the fandom - you've taught me how to let go of the past and move on. You guys taught me that there's such thing as good-hearted people. I would like to especially thank MusicKeeper, who taught me how precious friendship can be, Sarahbear00001, who reminded me how awesome it is to make new friends, Jedi-Master-Nightwing, who faithfully kept up with my crazy stories when I was sure that everyone else would kill me for not updating for so long, CC-2224 Commader Cody, who reminded me that there was always such thing as a new day, somethingspecial35, who taught me how to be humble but firm, CT-7567, who taught me about the goodness of people, and SaltiQuill, who had been with me from the very beginning as a guest reviewer - and taught me that one gesture of kindness is all you really need. So...they might not have known that they taught me this much, but trust me - they did. :) **

**If I hadn't named you, don't feel offended, because I know how much you've supported me, too. I love you all to pieces and hope that you all are truly happy about where you are right now. If not, then...here's a hug. *flings arms around you* And I'm always ready to be ranted at. ;) Another thing (because I did this in the last one-year celebration story - _long live, all the walls we crashed through - how the kingdom lights shined just for me and you._) **

_**Thank you! Luv ya bunches, **_

_**Katierosefun. (Caroline) xx**_


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